Last Stand
by Brievel
Summary: A heroic Padawan sells her life during Order 66 to give her friends time to escape.


Human Padawan Juliana Armano paused and drew back, shaking her head. "No no no. You can't be so obvious, Yular. I knew immediately what you were up to, and could have slipped under and thrust my lightsaber up through your heart easily."

The Togruta youngling stuck out his lower lip. "No you couldn't, I would've blocked you."

Juliana shook her head. "Parried. Anyway, let's try again." Yular feinted to the right, then lunged forward wildly. Juliana sidestepped neatly, dropped to the floor, and stabbed upward as Yular, unable to stop his forward momentum, staggered by her.

He sighed heavily as Juliana withdrew her harmless beam of light from his chest. She raised an eyebrow at him, and he scowled. Yular knew what she wanted him to say, and he didn't want to say it.

Juliana sat down beside him on the floor. "A Jedi has to know when to admit they're wrong. Everybody makes mistakes, but lots of beings won't admit that they do. By not admitting your mistakes, you're tacitly saying you're perfect. To not admit you're wrong is a form of pride, and pride-" She broke off, looking expectantly at the young learner.

"Pride blocks the flow of the Force, and leads to the dark side," Yular recited.

Juliana smiled. "I'm glad you pay attention to Master Yoda, at least. Now, shall we try once more?"

They both rose to their feet, just as the door opened. Anakin Skywalker strode in. At least, the figure who entered resembled Anakin. Juliana frowned. Who _was_ this...?

This question was half answered a moment later when a bar of blue energy erupted from the newcomer's hand and sheared through a tiny human girl. Juliana's lightsabre sprang to her hand and spat peridot lightning. She leapt forward and blocked his sweep towards Yular. "Kira! Kaye!" she cried.

A green Twi-lek female and her fellow padawan, a Nautiloid male, hurried forward. Kaye drew his lightsabre, ready to spring to Juliana's aid, but Kira knew what her friend had meant. "No! Kaye! We have to get the younglings away!"

Kaye paused a moment, then his lethally humming blue blade shrank away and he swooped up a couple of younglings, shepherding a few older ones along ahead of him. Kira, with a sob, scooped up Yular, but stood looking at her friend a moment longer.

"Go!" shouted Juliana, trembling as she forced her tired arms to keep Anakin's lightsaber at bay. "I'm holding him off so you can get the younglings to safety!" she added angrily. "Go _on_!" Kira spun and dashed off, tears rolling unchecked down her face. On her shoulder, Yular sobbed unashamedly. He seemed to grasp that he would never see his Juliana again.

Juliana was alone with Anakin now. They stared at each other through the crisscrossed blades. "Anakin, why are you doing this?" Juliana's anguished whisper resounded through the room as though she'd shouted. Her eyes, so close to the colour and hue of his lightsaber, were wide now in pain and confusion.

He broke the stalemate of their blades, sweeping at her legs. Juliana leapt upwards, avoiding the strike. As she descended, she brought her lightsabre straight down at his head. Anakin brought his weapon up to block, and Juliana, without ever even touching his sabre, landed and swept her weapon towards his waist, though he blocked her easily.

But Juliana had her tactics figured out now. She wasn't strong enough to lock blades with him for any amount of time, but is she threw at him lots of feints and ruses, and managed to wear him down, she _might_ have a chance of surviving this...

Half an hour later, she had a dozen minor wounds and was completely exhausted. "Anakin," she pleaded, her voice catching with weariness, and she stumbled.

"That name has no meaning for me now," he replied coldly. "I am Darth Vader. Anakin Skywalker is dead."

"As soon you will also be!" Juliana cried, driving straight for his heart. Darth Vader brought his lightsabre up to parry. But instead of blocking the blade, the bar of blue plasma sliced through the handle.

The peridot sabre winked out a hands' breadth away from him. Juliana stood silently a moment, looking at the useless grip in her hand. Then she looked up at Vader. "I was rather attached to that lightsabre," she said, then hurled herself onto him and began pummeling, kicking, biting, and scratching. Ignoring a dizzying punch from her opponent, Juliana latched onto his left shoulder with her teeth and clung there tenaciously. Dizzy and feeling ill from all of her wounds, she accepted the truth: she was dying. All she could hope for was to sell her life dearly.

She felt a burning, searing pain in her left side. Juliana twisted her head around - which elicited a gasp from Anakin, her teeth still being locked into his shoulder - to see what it was. Darth Vader had thrust his lightsabre up into her in an attempt to make her let go (which wasn't working,) and to hasten her demise, (which was.)

She snorted scornfully, kicked him in the shin, let go with her teeth, dropped and somersaulted backwards. But by the time she was on her feet, Vader was there, blue blade whirling. A couple of swift slashes to her shoulders disabled her arms.

Juliana dropped to her knees, stunned. She was defeated. Then she looked boldly up at her tormentor, she had never been one to stay in shock a long time. She smiled fearlessly up at him.

"Kill me, then," Juliana mocked. "Shouldn't be too hard. But Kira and Kaye escaped, and took some of the younglings with them. They'll train them as Jedi. You can never win! You might kill me, you might kill most of us. But you can't kill everyone in the galaxy. One day, someone, somewhere, will rise up and overthrow you! You can't win, Sith!" Juliana laughed in his face, boldly, fearlessly. She knew she would die anyway. But she had bought her friends time, they had gotten away safely. She laughed again, completely unafraid.

Vader's control over his rage snapped. He swung his lightsabre, and Juliana toppled over. Her eyes, sightless now, stared up at him accusingly. Her left arm had flung out as she'd fallen, and now pointed at him. The expression on her face was part grief, part accusation, but mostly triumph. Even in death, she had still won.

Thus ended Padawan Juliana Armano.


End file.
